ITM Power Executives Gain Exercisable Options as Peel Hunt Flags Delivery Risk

ITM Power's top two executives have crossed a vesting threshold, but the news does little to settle the question investors actually care about: whether the hydrogen specialist can convert its order book into revenue on schedule. The Sheffield-based company disclosed on 28 October that a combined 431,157 options under its long-term incentive plan (LTIP) became exercisable at a strike price of £0.05 per share.

Chief executive Dennis Schulz accounts for 298,494 of the total, with chief technology officer Simon Bourne holding the remaining 132,663. The vesting of options is a remuneration milestone, not a share sale — no exercise has taken place and no cash has flowed to the company as a result.

That distinction matters because ITM Power has already reported a separate transaction involving its CEO. On 22 October, Schulz exercised 672,516 options and then sold 354,476 shares, leaving him with a holding of 517,894 shares. The company said the sale was made to cover tax liabilities. The two events should be read as distinct: the newly exercisable awards are forward-looking entitlements, while the October sale was a completed disposal tied to a tax obligation.

Broker trims target on project timing

Away from the compensation file, Peel Hunt cut its price target on the stock from 92p to 88p on 22 October, pointing to execution risk, uncertainty over the conversion of orders into revenue, and hydrogen projects that may be advancing more slowly than management and investors had anticipated. The broker's concern is about the pace of the business rather than the level of headline sales.

The company's own numbers illustrate why. Preliminary results for the fiscal year ended in late April, published on 19 October, showed revenue of £43.6m, a rise of 68%, alongside an adjusted EBITDA loss of £20.2m. Growth at that rate still left ITM Power in the red on an adjusted basis, so investors are weighing not just additional turnover but how quickly losses narrow alongside it.

Management has guided for revenue of £50m to £60m in fiscal 2027, with an adjusted EBITDA loss of £17m to £20m for the same period. Those figures are forecasts rather than booked business — precisely the point where Peel Hunt's warning about extended project timelines bites.

November meeting in focus

The next confirmed date on the corporate calendar is a general meeting at 10:00 on 13 November 2026 in Sheffield, convened by the company on 27 October. Until then, the option disclosure belongs in the remuneration column. The operational scorecard rests on delivery: only progress on converting orders will show whether the promised revenue growth and the expected narrowing of losses arrive in step — the very risk Peel Hunt has flagged.